#lemurs

Thursday September 14 – Isalo

Today we would be doing our final nature hike and have our last chance to see lemurs in Isalo National Park.  This area is desert like and very warm and there was an opportunity to see 4 different types of lemur.  The park was close to the hotel but required a few kilometre ride in the bus on a very bumpy road.  Once we got to the park we set out up a hill, spotting some birds, a frog and a large stick insect along the way.   At the top our guide pointed out the two types of tombs, which were caves in the cliffs with the lower cave being the initial “drying cave” and the higher ones up the cliff being the permanent tombs, which required rock climbing skills for the family to place the coffins and bones! We saw a plant called the elephant foot which is a plant endemic to Madagascar.  It has a big bulbous bottom in the shape of an elephant foot with yellow flowers. We hiked up to a viewpoint where we got a good view of the rocks and the canyon.   We also saw a grass snake,  which was super fast, and a scorpion,  which our guide found under a rock.  We carried on to the natural pool,  which was a little blue lagoon and waterfall in the canyon.   There was a family of lemurs beside the pool,  chasing each other around.   Some of the group went for a quick swim while others relaxed in the shade.  We carried on in the heat through the grassland along the edge of the canyon (wondered how many snakes were slithering around in there!).  Finally we descended down the canyon to a campsite area where we had a bbq zebu lunch.  After lunch we walked through the canyon to two more natural pools,  where some of the group did some more swimming.  I was tempted to go in until two lemurs approached with the intention of liberating some bananas from some of our packs.   One was extremely persistent and would not give up even when I had my camera in his face!  His efforts paid off though as he managed to open the zippers of someone’s pack, poke his head in and grab a banana! As we walked back through the canyon we saw a massive spider,  which was apparently still a “baby” in a web alongside the path.   When we got back to the camp we spotted a sifaka, who lived alone.   As we approached it “danced” across the ground and went up a tree,  topping off the visit for everyone! Hiked back to the car after a long hot day out and took a swim in the hotel swimming pool when we got back before dinner.  An amazing day with other closest encounter with the lemurs. 

Wednesday September 13 – Ranomafana to Isalo

Another early start this morning as we had a long drive further south to Isalo.  As we would be stopping in a park along the way for a walk,  we would not have time to stop for a lunch so we made a stop at a store to pick up some more “road snacks”.  I opted for a bag of Doritos ?.  Throughout the drive our guide Sol imparted more information on local customs on us – this time about circumcision ceremonies.  These often take place when the boys  2 or 3 years old.   There appeared to be two different situations – one where the maternal grandfather is required to eat the foreskin (put into a banana) or another where the foreskin is placed on the end of a shotgun barrel and blown away!   After this information I don’t think the bananas at breakfast were quite as popular!   Apparently some areas have spear throwing fights to accompany the ceremony as well where the purpose is apparently not to harm (not sure how that works when a bunch of sharp objects are being tossed around!).  Along the way we stopped at a silk factory where they showed the process from cocoon to finished product, which was interesting.   We also stopped at a factory making handmade paper with flowers pressed in it.   While we were there waiting we started talking to a French man who mentioned Normandy when he learned some of us were Canadians.  He spoke with fondness about how he was a young boy when the Canadians and Americans landed on the beaches and liberated his town.  We were a bit shocked as he didn’t look much older than 67 or 68 yet he was apparently 80!  Definitely looked good for his age, which he attributed to always being in love! After noon we stopped at Anja National Park for a walk to spot ringtail lemurs and different chameleons.  We got to see a few different groups of ring tail lemurs, including some with babies clinging to their stomaches and backs.   They start out on the stomach and graduate to the back when they are a few months old.   The group was heading to the water to eat some dirt to aid digestion.   We were able to get pretty close and got some good shots while they were in the open.    We ran into a few others along the way including two sitting right by the path.  We also saw a chameleon,  which one of the guides fed a grasshopper on a stick so we got to see his tongue.   Hard to get a shot though but I did manage to get a photo of him with a cricket hanging out of his mouth when he got too full!  After the walk we carried on in the bus heading south.   We got to a photo stop of some rock formations known as the “southern gate” when we came across a group of vigilantes carrying sticks,  spears and a gun or two that were tracking a “zebu gangster” who had recently stolen some zebu from a zebu farmer.  They seemed friendly to us but I’m pretty sure they would likely kill or maim the guy stole the zebu!  We finally made it to our hotel in Isalo, which had large rooms surrounding a pool but the door locks were a bit finicky.   For dinner I had a zebu steak, which was good.   Another tiring day so an early night. 

Tuesday September 12 – Ranomafana

This morning we headed to Ranomafana Park for a walk where we saw golden bamboo lemur,  the red fronted brown lemur,  leaf chameleon,  and another type of lemur. This park was definitely more crowded than our previous stops so it was difficult to get great photos.  We had a free afternoon to relax so I tried to update some blogs and relax by the river.  Before dinner we went on a night walk,  again along the side of the road where we saw a mouse lemur and some chameleons as well as a frog.  For dinner I had the spring rolls, which were more like the Vietnamese salad rolls and the roasted chicken.   Another early night as we would be getting up early for  another long drive to Isalo.

Friday September 8 – Grand Tsingy 

Woke up early this morning to prepare for our hike in the Grand Tsingy.  The frog family “checked out” around 5:30 am as I was finishing getting ready.  Had breakfast and then got in our jeeps for the bumpy ride of an hour and a half or so to the park.  The roads are very bumpy and the drive is slow but it appeared that they were doing some roadwork to repair damaged sections of the road.  We arrived at the parking lot and prepared for the morning’s hike.  The preparations included putting on harnesses for the climbing amongst the “tsingy”, which are the main feature of the park and which are limestone pinnacles that have been eroded into sharp and jagged edges. The weather was hot and it was good that we were doing the hike in the morning.  We climbed up the rocks using ladders,  stones and cables and made it to a viewing platform where you could see along the tops of the rocks.  The viewing platform was small so we didn’t linger up there too long as we had to let more people go up.   I went up another platform in a different area which was completely deserted as no one else from our group went up to it.   We then descended into a gorge amongst the rocks for our lunch, which involved crawling through some small tunnels in the rocks.  We had our packed lunches in the gorge.  Mine consisted of some rabbit pate, olives and crackers plus a squished donut for dessert.   The rabbit pate was actually pretty good despite the fact that it looked and smelled like cat food! After lunch we carried on,  hiking down and out of the tsingy and to the forest and savannah areas and then back to our jeeps.   The temperature was heating up so it was nice to get back to the air conditioned jeep.  We then drove back to the hotel over the slow and bumpy road.  We had some free time before dinner so I relaxed by the pool before dinner.  Another tiring day so fell asleep pretty quickly. 

Thursday September 7 – Kirindy to Bekopaka

 Managed to sleep fairly well last night,  despite the multiple trips to the toilet.   The power came back on shortly before I was about to get up.  Got all packed up and headed to the breakfast area where I had an omelet,  some bread and some great honey.    We then got into our jeeps for a walk around the Kirindy Forest Reserve to spot some birds and lemurs.   Had some amazingly close encounters with some brown lemurs that sat low in the trees right in front of us and even walked along the ground!  Managed to get some great photos.   We saw a few interesting looking birds as well but I wasn’t able to get any really good photos before they flew off.  We then got in our jeeps for the long ride to Bekopaka.  We first stopped at a sacred Baobob tree that was around 1,500 years old!  Afterwards we carried on on the bumpy dirty road until we came to the first “ferry” crossing,  which essentially was a couple of boats with wood slapped on top.   We drove on and they loaded it up with 5 cars,  which left little room to move around the”ferry”.  It also didn’t allow any room to open the doors for the cars on the inside so some people had to climb out the other side.  I had expected a short crossing but the ferry headed down the river and was probably 20-30 minutes long.   At the other end we “docked” at the end of 4 other “ferries” tied together and walked off since there was no way to get into the cars.  As we walked off there was a guy hammering nails into the ferry! After the ferry we stopped in a village for lunch which appeared to be a popular lunch stop for tourists as the road was lined with jeeps.  Had an amazing and very nicely plated lunch of river prawns with fries and vegetables. We then headed back on the road to Bekopaka in the afternoon heat.  Along the way we stopped at a small village where there was another jeep broken down.  Our drivers attempted to assist with the repair while we hung out with the villagers who seemed keen to hang out with us and have their photos taken.  It was getting pretty warm so I spent more time sitting in the jeep with the AC. We headed back on our way for a few more hours until we reached the second “ferry” which was shorter as it was just across the river; however, this ferry required the vehicles to drive through the river out to the ferry.  The ferry “workers” then move the tire ramps to allow each vehicle to get up onto the ferry.  After the short motor across the second half of the river we drove the last few minutes to our lodge,  which was a serious of bungalows with a nice pool.   I was in a big bungalow with 4 or 5 different rooms and mine had two levels – the downstairs had a set of bunk beds and the bathroom,  which appeared to double as a frog hotel in the evenings!  Upstairs was the main bedroom with a large bed with a canopy mosquito net and a wrap around terrace. After a brief cleanup in the room and an attempt at a shower with very little water pressure, we met for dinner in the hotel restaurant.  I had the duck for dinner with onion soup for a starter.  Another tiring day and, once I returned to my room, I only had enough energy to download my photos to my tablet and make some rough notes for my blog before falling asleep.

Tuesday September 5 – Perinet to ‘Tana

We started the day off with a morning trek in the reserve to spot lemurs,  including the largest lemur,  the indiri, in their natural habitat.   Trekked around the circuit in the park and saw the indiri, golden lemurs,  various chameleons,  a strange bug,  some birds and a boa constrictor lying in the grass outside the visitor centre.   Fortunately, we didn’t spot that until after the trek!   The indiri were amazing and we had a chance to stand below them and listen to them scream their loud call, which almost sounds like a whale!  Managed to get some decent photos before we headed back to the bus.  We returned to the lodge for lunch and I had the zebu wok,  which was really good!  We then got back on the bus for the bumpy and windy ride back to ‘Tana.  On the way we stopped in a local village called Perinet for a short walking tour.   Was a nice experience to check out how the local people live.  We got back on the bus and carried on to ‘Tana.  Got back when it was dark and we had some supper quickly before heading to bed to get some sleep before our early flight to Morondava.  I had the zebu and pork spaghetti,  which was good.   Set my alarm for 3:30 and headed to bed.